Smart Nation

I asked the librarian what happened to the old system, whereby you top up your prepaid account and any unused time will be carried forward. She told me that the library had discontinued the prepaid account since March, and that I would have to use another terminal to request for a refund of the unused amount to my bank account.

If the above is what we call moving forward to become a smart nation – I think we are really in trouble!

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It’s awesome to see the Singapore government taking steps to listen and be open to ideas and collaborations that help Singapore progress. Two weeks ago, we made a commitment to the Prime Minister of Singapore—that we would deliver a proposal within 14 days to help advance the country to a true cashless society by developing a unified e-payment system within 18 months. We’re committed to the betterment of Singapore and are fully ready to do our part to make us the most advanced Smart Nation in the world. I am open to hearing any feedback from you – because this isn’t just a government initiative, this affects all of us as Singaporeans.

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A netizen complained about being scolded by a SMRT staff for not being "smart" enough to use the top-up machine. She was trying to top it up at the counter when the person approached her and reminded her that we are a Smart nation.

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Last week, a government agency called and said that the one and only method of payment is by Nets at their office from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday to Friday. When I went to their office to make payment by Nets – I reconfirmed with the staff as to whether Nets was the one and only method of payment. The answer was yes – no cash, no internet banking, no credit card, no debit card, no cheques, no ATM! So much for the remarks in the subject news article “In high-tech Singapore, where cashless payment options abound”!

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Our reader thinks Singapore must not be compared to China in terms of cashless payments as we are two very different countries. A Smart Nation should not be smart just for the sake of it. What's the point of "going smart" when people still lack graciousness or if children do not understand the value of money?

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Responding to PM Lee's National Day Rally, Workers' Party's Yee Jenn Jong said he already touched on the dangers of diabetes and the importance of using technology in 2014 as he wanted to make services more affordable. He also thinks the government and its regulations are killing innovation in Singapore. Do you agree?

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A netizen who was equally perplexed by the PM's talking points during the NDR highlighted actual issues which should have been raised at the event. He thinks politicians should not focus on the "rosy outlook" here because Singapore will no longer be a special location in the global economy if they adopt this narrow mindset.

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I had been trying to help my mum who is computer illiterate to register for the new Singpass 2FA. Not only did the registration failed for both SMS and online web registration, it appeared that my mum's information on their database had been compromised with an unknown mobile number, as it was displayed when one tries to register online. What's worse is, subsequent attempts to contact the customer support of Singpass and Assurity.com, via phone and online email/form, were totally non-responsive. Yes, both phone and online email/feedback form, to each of them, 4 methods, came to no avail after several days.